The Hinges of Destiny
by Kitty O
Summary: "The secret was known, and the law was hanging over them. And everyone was wondering the same thing: what was Arthur going to do?" OS Reveal Ficlet, Knights' POV. /"Choices are the hinges of destiny." - Attributed to both Edwin Markham and Pythagoras./


**The part where Arthur knows, and no one knows what he's going to do, and the knights and friends step forward to protect Merlin. But this time, it's from the knights' POVs. Ficlet. Just my little-character-muse coming out. No slash. **

The secret was known, the words were out, and the law was hanging over them. And everyone was wondering the same thing: what was Arthur going to do now?

Would he accept it? Would he arrest Merlin? Would he just kill him now?

Gwaine's eyes flickered back and forth between the prince and the warlock, wondering if he should intervene. Surely Arthur wouldn't hurt Merlin, not after he just saved the lives of the entire Round Table. And surely if he tried to, the same Merlin who just demolished half a forest would do something about that. But Merlin looked so still right now, face pale and blood dripping from a shallow cut on his mouth, that Gwaine doubted he would move for the world. Should Gwaine move in front of Merlin to protect him from the son of Uther's rage? Or should he know that Arthur would never hurt Merlin?

Percival studied the men before him silently. He watched Arthur's hand twitch for his sword, watched Merlin's eyes frozen on the prince, and he wondered if he should do something. Usually he wouldn't… Generally, Percival found, if you let men muddle through things for themselves, they came to the right conclusion. They just needed to talk it out with their own selves before they realized what was right and what was wrong. And if they were wrong and they knew it, all it took was a little more talking to themselves to make it right. However, this situation was a bit different. If Arthur did something he would regret, then there wouldn't be a chance to make it right. If Merlin did something he would regret, then the fury of Camelot and himself would come crashing down on him. Maybe, in this case, someone needed to help them.

Lancelot winced as he took in the scene before him, Arthur and Merlin standing, staring at each other from a distance. It had been his worst nightmare for a while: the day Arthur discovered Merlin's secret. Arthur looked blank and Merlin looked tired, with the knights and Guinevere standing to the side, tense. What if Arthur ordered them to arrest Merlin? No, he wouldn't—_but what if he did?_ What would Lancelot do? Merlin was one of his best friends, the best man he knew, with a heart of gold. Lancelot couldn't let anything happen to him. But he'd sworn loyalty to Arthur, sworn obedience to the crown. He'd worked all his life to get the chance to do that, as a knight. Arthur and Merlin were his best friends and he couldn't betray either.

Gwen felt tears in her eyes as she watched her friends in a stand off. She kept her eyes glued to the man she loved, silently praying. _Please, Arthur, don't do anything rash. Merlin's our friend. He's our friend. Please, Arthur, do the right thing… _But she didn't doubt him. Much. The man Arthur was inside would make the right decision. If Arthur let him. She couldn't stand to think of the alternative.

Elyan watched the scene in front of him, but kept looking at Gwen instead, at the tears in his sister's eyes. She didn't want anything to happen to either man, he knew. He remembered briefly that he had sworn loyalty and obedience to Arthur when he became a knight. And he remembered that in his heart, he'd sworn loyalty to his sister long before.

Leon sighed a little to himself, wondering if everything was about to become a catastrophe. Merlin had just saved them from a veritable army of soldiers, but would that save him from the law? He knew how the king felt about sorcerers—heck, he knew how _he_ felt about sorcerers—and he knew that by law, Merlin should die. He also knew that if Arthur killed Merlin, he would hate himself forever. They were friends. Leon knew what it felt like to lose friends… And he wondered if it would be more disloyal to the prince if he stopped the capture of a warlock, or if he let the prince destroy his friend and himself. And then he wondered—what if he didn't even have to make the decision? It all depended on Arthur.

They all couldn't help thinking of the possibilities.

Would Arthur accept it? Would he arrest Merlin? Would he just kill him now?

Arthur took a step towards Merlin, his hand hovering near his sword.

Gwaine, Elyan, and Leon stepped forward, as if to block him. Percival, Lancelot, and Gwen did not. Gwaine stepped forward to protect Merlin, no matter what Arthur decided. Elyan wanted to protect Merlin for Gwen, and Leon wanted to protect Arthur from himself. Lancelot and Guinevere trusted Arthur to do the right thing, so they stayed put. Percival just saw the others making a move and knew he wasn't needed.

Arthur barely noticed.

"_Mer_lin," he said. "You. Are. An _idi_ot."

And everyone could suddenly breathe easier at the words they'd heard so many times.


End file.
